Town's Insurance Carrier To Pay $15,000 To Settle Suit

WEST HARTFORD — The town's insurance carrier has settled a defamation lawsuit against numerous town officials, paying $15,000 to complainant James S. Brewer.

Town Manager Barry M. Feldman, a defendant in the suit, said that he is relieved the litigation is over -- and that the town's insurance carrier covered all costs. But not everyone shared his feeling.

Former Town Attorney Marjorie Wilder, also a defendant, vehemently opposed the settlement, saying she had hoped to fight the suit in court.

``I am disappointed,'' Wilder said. ``There was no merit to the lawsuit and I was looking forward to making that apparent in a court of law.''

Brewer, a well-known municipal lawyer who lives in town, filed a federal civil rights lawsuit that was dismissed in 1996. A year later, he sued the town in Hartford Superior Court, claiming that officials had compiled a ``dossier'' of information on him, aimed at intimidating him and discouraging him from speaking publicly on town issues.

Brewer claimed the dossier violated his privacy and defamed him. Besides Wilder, other defendants named were Councilman Al Turco, former council members Lawrence Price and Madeline McKernan and former Mayor Sandra Klebanoff.

Brewer's lawyer, Salvatore Bonanno, declined to comment on the settlement.

After spending $8,451 in litigation costs, town officials in May recommended that the council settle the suit. The town's insurance carrier, Coregis Insurance Co., agreed to pay the full settlement costs, Town Attorney Michael McGoldrick said.

McGoldrick argued that the price of winning in court would be far higher than the settlement cost.

At the time, council members were divided over whether to settle. The Republican-controlled council agreed with McGoldrick. The three Democrats voted against a settlement, arguing that the town was sending a bad message that officials would rather pay a disgruntled resident than face a challenge in court.

Although Democrats raised concerns about insurance premiums going up as a result of the settlement, the rates have gone down, said Susan M. Donatelli, the town's risk manager.

``This did not affect us negatively,'' Donatelli said. ``Obviously, they think we handled our cases well.''